Despite fixing the maximum age limit of 75 years for senior citizens to undertake the arduous Amarnath pilgrimage, 79-year-old J&K Governor NN Vohra, who is also Chairman of Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board (SASB) is scheduled to perform the ‘pratham poojan’ inside the holy cave shrine of Amarnath located at an altitude of 13,000 (approx) ft in South Kashmir district of Anantnag on Thursday.
After large number of deaths due to sudden cardiac arrests were reported along the yatra track, the Shrine Board authorities had launched an aggressive campaign and made it mandatory for the pilgrims to undergo necessary health checks.
Along with this an advisory was also issued for the first time in 2013 specifying that the children below the age of 13 years and senior citizens above 75 years would not be allowed to undertake the pilgrimage.
Over 40 pilgrims died during the yatra in 2014 while over 90 deaths were reported in 2012. less than 20 pilgrims died in 2013, official sources said.
Meanwhile, ahead of the start of yatra the first batch of over 1200 pilgrims was flagged off from Jammu by two BJP Cabinet Ministers, lal Singh and Sukhnandan Choudhary in the presence of party legislators Priya Sethi, Satpal Sharma and Rajesh Gupta from Yatri Niwas in Jammu on wednesday morning.
Elaborate security arrangements were made by the State Government to ensure safety of the pilgrims along the entire yatra route.
However, pilgrims arriving here for on spot registration complained of lack of facilities at the registration counters.
Quick reactions teams (QRT’s) of paramilitary forces have been stationed along the Jammu Srinagar national highway to deal with any exigency.
Health Minister lal Singh after flagging off the yatra from Jammu told media persons, “the State Government has made all possible arrangements to ensure smooth pilgrimage.” He said there is no threat to the yatra as elaborate security arrangements have been made.
Ironically, even before the traditional ‘pratham poojan’ several VVIP’s have already performed the darshan and offered prayers without any restrictions.
On Wednesday, Union Minister Mahesh Sharma along with his close relative visited the cave shrine to offer special prayers. He was accompanied by one of the senior most functionary of a private helicopter service provider.